Top 3 Key Points:
- Technical Glitches: The interview faced significant delays due to technical issues, with Elon Musk falsely claiming a DDOS attack.
- Musk Defends Fossil Fuels: Surprisingly, Musk argued against vilifying the oil and gas industry, despite his push for sustainable energy.
- Climate Discussion: Musk downplayed the urgency of transitioning to sustainable energy, contradicting scientific warnings.
Elon Musk’s much-anticipated interview with former President Donald Trump on X Spaces got off to a disastrous start. Scheduled for 8 PM ET, the live stream faced an immediate crash, delaying the start by 42 minutes. During the wait, many listeners, including some from The Verge, reported hearing low-quality techno music from Trump’s account for about 30 minutes.
At first, Musk claimed that the delay was due to a “massive DDOS attack” on the platform, making it impossible to proceed as planned. However, sources within X quickly debunked this, confirming there was no denial-of-service attack. An X employee even mentioned that there was a “99 percent” chance Musk was lying about the attack.
Once the interview finally began, Musk reiterated his DDOS claim, suggesting that the attack was an attempt to prevent Trump from being heard. This incident was reminiscent of another X Spaces mishap in 2023 when Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s presidential announcement also faced technical difficulties, which Musk attributed to overloaded servers.
As the conversation moved forward, after touching on topics like immigration and foreign policy, Musk and Trump discussed energy and climate change. Surprisingly, Musk defended the oil and gas industry, despite his well-known advocacy for sustainable energy through his companies like Tesla. Musk argued that the economy would collapse if these industries were forced to shut down and suggested that transitioning to sustainable energy could take “50 to 100 years,” despite scientists warning about the urgent need for change. Trump later exaggerated this timeline to “500 to 1,000 years,” a statement Musk didn’t correct.
Musk added that while transitioning to sustainable energy should be a goal, it shouldn’t come at the expense of the oil and gas industry or cause immediate hardship. However, he contradicted himself by acknowledging that continued use of fossil fuels would lead to poor air quality, causing health issues like headaches and nausea. Despite this, Musk insisted there was no need to rush the transition.
Trump, often sounding as though he was slurring, joked about rising sea levels creating more “oceanfront property,” a comment quickly criticized by Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign. He also briefly mentioned electric vehicles, claiming they rely on fossil fuel-powered energy, but the discussion didn’t go much further. Although Trump has vowed to end subsidies for electric vehicles, which could hurt Tesla’s sales, the topic was not deeply explored. Trump also suggested Musk add solar panels to Tesla cars, a concept Tesla once explored but did not pursue.
Overall, the interview was marked by technical failures, surprising stances on energy, and a lack of focus on critical issues, leaving many questioning the direction of both Musk’s and Trump’s visions for the future.
Trump, slurring, says he’s okay with climate change and rising sea levels because he thinks he’ll “have more oceanfront property” pic.twitter.com/AmdrdXCn0v
— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) August 13, 2024
